PSU head coach gives best thought on today's game: “this was a thorough beating from start to finish.”

January 20, 2007 State College, PA Bryce Jordan Center ÂNeeding to make sure a golden opportunity didn’t slip through their hands; the Spartans came into PSU

January 20, 2007

State College, PA

Bryce Jordan Center

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Needing to make sure a golden opportunity didn’t slip through their hands; the Spartans came into PSU today and from the start manhandled the Lions.

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The defensive intensity was better then it had been all season as Izzo promised and the Spartans took it to the Lions on both ends. Strong play by Goran Suton (16 points and 6 rebounds) the MSU sophomore was over shadowed by the spectacular play of Drew Neitzel. The unequivocal leader of the Spartan cagers had 17 by half time when the Spartans went to the locker room with a 22 point lead. Neitzel ended the game with 28 points and 5 assists.

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The Bryce Jordan center is nicer then some NBA arenas and I would hate to play here if the fan base cared about basketball. Dark curtains closed parts of the upper deck, as the fans here don’t get excited about Big Ten basketball. That’s good for them because the beating the Spartans handed out wouldn’t have gone over as well as it did here today at a school with any pride in it’s basketball program as a whole.

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With 15:58 in the second half, Neitzel had a no look dish to Marquise Gray that summed up the day. Marquise went strong, got the bucket and the foul giving the Spartans a 24-point lead and total domination.

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The Izzone (college basketball’s best student section) made the trip to State College and owned the arena in the second half. With the morgue like conditions from a fan base that would have rather been talking football recruiting, they chanted “Why so quiet” and other catchy slogans turning the Bryce Jordan into Breslin East. Their presence was huge today. They bought 100 tickets and the people in front of my seat asked me about how loud it must be at Breslin. One older Lion season ticket holder said “are they that annoying at home? It makes it hard to watch a game.” I politely told her “their worse, and it’s beautiful!”

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I had said before the game both on TV and here on Spartan Nation that the big men had to show up and they did. As a unit they had their best performance of the season. Plummeting the overmatched Lions making it clear who were the men and who were the boys. The Izzone added to the misery of the crowd here in HAPPY VALLEY when they chanted, “You’re not happy” to the silent crowd.

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With 6:03 left in the game, Marquise hit Drew on a back door pass that put the Spartans up 25 and at this point I am just going to stop. Izzo gave PSU head coach Ed DeChellis a clinic and the Spartan players obliged. It was the best game of the season and one that MSU needed. Great win for the Spartans. Oh by the way, it was 91-64!

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“This is the best we played all season,” said a relieved Izzo after the game.  The players and the coaches all had praise for the Izzone that was outstanding. “No doubt, the Izzone is the best in the land, it was incredible, said an appreciative Neitzel. “We needed them and they were so huge for us, I love the Izzone,” was the reaction of Gray.

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Coach DeChellis of Penn State summed it up best. “We have asked for and wanted a crowd like that, all things came together and we laid an egg.” OUCH!

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Coach DeChellis said it all: “this was a thorough beating from start to finish.”

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